Kilkenny great Jackie Tyrrell says the provincial round robin format and the re-structured calendar has completely "changed the dynamic" of the league since his era as a player.
The Allianz Hurling League begins this weekend, with several analysts positing that the hurling league, in stark contrast to the football league which has risen in prominence in the modern era, has been neutered and stripped of what cache it had since the championship embraced the provincial round robin model before the memorable 2018 championship.
Arguably, the stakes have been lowered further since the shape of Division 1 was tweaked in 2019, with 1A and 1B now no longer streamed on a quality basis and with just three identifiable yo-yo teams at serious risk of relegation every spring.
Tyrrell won six league titles during his career and operated under a regime, the Brian Cody one, where winning every game possible was the objective, regardless of the competition at issue.
"I think Brian's attitude was pretty clear. It was foot to the floor, every game was hugely, hugely competitive," Tyrrell told the RTÉ GAA podcast this week.
"It was an opportunity to develop, it was an opportunity to build a team, and if you personally had a jersey, you had to hold onto it.
"He followed that through that if you performed in the league, you played in the championship.
"But the nature of the championship has completely changed since then. Back then, when the league was finished, you went back to your club for a month. Then you went back into Kilkenny for a couple of weeks. There was a six-week gap altogether between the end of the league and the championship.
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"Whereas now the league finishes and then two weeks later, you're into a championship. You're playing four or five games over a six-week period. It's all about the panel now.
"Now, in the round robin situation, you need a panel of 20+. You have guys that you might see as rookies and they might be playing in your last game due to suspension and injuries. And you'll probably be looking for a result. The whole dynamic of the round robin has a huge influence on the league."
Looking ahead to the 2022 league campaign, Tyrrell says it'll be treated as a forum for development and taken as an opportunity to build squad depth by some counties - but that others might be hungry to gobble up silverware.
"But within the league, I think there are a couple of teams that will be earmarking a big performance. I do think silverware for the likes of Waterford or Dublin, I think it would do an awful lot versus silverware for a Kilkenny or a Tipperary or a Limerick.
"The journey that Mattie Kenny and Liam Cahill are on with those teams, they're three or fours down the line. I think silverware would be a huge boost for them, their panel and their morale.
"So, I expect strong performances for them. Limerick will be there or thereabouts, Kilkenny will always compete, Cork will be blasé about it. The dynamic of the league has changed. It's all about unearthing talent, developing your panel, getting miles into the older personnel of the panel, without overloading them too much, so that they're ready for championship come the Round Robin."
